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Middle school students study at CSU Mountain Field Station

By Lisa Krebs

Posted:
10/13/2012 09:15:34 PM MDT

Updated:
10/13/2012 09:16:21 PM MDT

Flagstaff Academy middle school students attended classes for three days at Pingree Park recently.
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Two hundred twenty eight Flagstaff Academy middle school students attended classes for three days at Pingree Park on Sept. 17-19. Students learned the principles of field ecology, stream ecology, astronomy, wilderness hiking and survival (including Leave No Trace Principles), and self confidence in the best possible place -- the mountain field station for Colorado State University.

According to Richard Louv in his book "Last Child in the Woods," this generation is of children at risk of something called Nature Deficit Disorder. It results in adults who are disconnected with their world and who have difficulty developing empathy, according to Louv. "Our community is totally committed to the development of all of our students' intellect and character," said Dr. Charlie Warren, assistant principal at Flagstaff Middle School. As a life-long scientist and educator, Warren has seen the significant positive impact of programs like these in the outdoors. "We believe deeply that children need nature in both play and learning to grow up to be respectful and empathetic human beings. These are truly memorable times for kids," said Warren. Around 42 parents, faculty and administrators accompanied the middle school students to the mountain camp.

"Learning in and about the outdoors is non-negotiable for us at Flagstaff -- it's the real thing for these kids. We are moving the classroom to the field through identifying bugs that trout eat, studying the changes in a stream after a fire blows by, and carefully watching the way the starry sky moves around us, " said Andrew Moore, Flagstaff Academy principal.

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Pingree Park has been the field camp for the Department of Natural Resources and forestry education at CSU since 1916. The camp is in operation May to October each year and hosts a variety of programs from school groups like Flagstaff to college groups to Elderhostel. The Flagstaff trip to Pingree is an annual event for the school.

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